Alan Titchmarsh fears he will die before he is knighted – but he would love the honour so his wife Alison could be a Lady.
The broadcaster, gardener and novelist, wed since 1975, became an MBE in 2000.
But Sir Alan? “I think I will have pegged it by the time it ever happens,” he laughed.
“Funnily enough it’s 20 years since I got my MBE. These are the kind of people I’m happy to be associated with, folk who do useful stuff quietly.
“A knighthood’s not for me to say. I mean it would be nice for my wife to be a Lady but then she has always been a lady.”
Yorkshire-born Alan, 70, who now has homes in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, is about to go on the road telling anecdotes about his life.
He said: “Alison has retired now from teaching so she doesn’t want to sit alone at home but she realises I will never stop.”
"I am trying to pace myself a bit more - not least because we have grandchildren and I like being with them. But I enjoy what I do.”
The dad-of-two firmly ruled out ever doing a reality show.
He said: “Viewers wouldn’t be interested in me going on and picking fluff out of my naval. That is a bit indulgent and they do seem to moan a lot.”
* An Evening with Alan Titchmarsh, www.alantitchmarsh.co.uk for tickets.
